The need for a computer hosting service providing began with the onset of linking computers together. Data centers enabling shared access to a plurality of computers were the first to provide for the hosting of services to an outside computer user. Traditionally, these data centers used mainframe computers which allowed end users to obtain required data storage services to facilitate such applications as ticket booking offices at multiple railway stations.
Computer hosting services became widespread with the development of the Internet as a highly suitable environment for server access. The growing demand for high-quality computer hosting, quality channels, and computers with corresponding hosting services installed, resulted in a tremendous growth of data centers and their remote hosting services.
The providing of a remote computer hosting service is based on a client-server concept, as described in Operating Systems: a Design-oriented Approach by Charles Crowley. Remote hosting service to client computers means that server and data storage services are physically separated from client computers and are linked to client computers by the Internet. The typical data center service represents one server with shared data files accessible by special network protocols, e.g., the World Wide Web (WWW) service protocol, i.e., http. Such special network protocols are designed to function within a distributed network of client computers and network servers, where the network of computers is not as compact as a local computer network.
Serving a special network protocol requires a WWW server, stable Internet and computer access, and non-interrupted service functioning. Dedicated Internet access lines, surplus power supply, cooling, fire and damage protection, etc. are usually found at the data centers, due to the substantial financial investment and technical expertise required. Typically, data centers provide the following services and equipment for their customers:                a dedicated computer with connection to the Internet which is fully operated by the client computer;        installation of the client computer at the data center; and        some limited computer resources for a particular service.        
Specially trained staff and tailored software are usually required to support the above-mentioned remote hosting service. To meet the needs of customers, data centers usually sell their portion of the remote hosting support service to a separate division or an independent company which then provides the web-hosting service. This gives the client the opportunity to fill in the provider's web server with the client's contents.
Web-hosting companies typically send users their own web-servers as they are, without the possibility of modification. Certain difficulties emerge when executable CGI files, or “scripts”, typically written in interpreted Perl-a-type language, are launched. The CGI files are executed at a server based on user query arguments, and are generally utilized for dynamic generation of web-page contents.
Most active servers generate their web pages by user query arguments. Nevertheless, incorrectly written applications may cause problems with versions of script language interpreters used, web-server versions, and web-server configuration versions; as well as server malfunction, unauthorized access and loss of data security.
One of the basic problems of prior art web-hosting techniques is the quality of access. The quality of access problem has many facets, including the quality of network connection and related fault tolerance level, the availability of the servicing computer, the fault tolerance of the hub and router supplementary equipment, and the non-interrupted functioning of the service-program that contacts the client computer.
Data centers provide much assistance with respect to the quality of access problem, as they readily utilize redundant network resources, standby power supplies, constant system monitoring, and air conditioners, among other things. Nevertheless, the computer which is executing the server-program is the focus for quality servicing. In cases of overload and excessive client requests to a server, the capacity of the computer executing the server program may be insufficient This problem of insufficient capacity is particularly true for servers which haphazardly generate pages of dynamic content, such as news portals which use interpretive language text script generation of requested page of dynamic content.
The problem of insufficient computer capacity may be dealt with in several ways. Obviously, a more powerful computer may be utilized to process hosting service requests. But simply adding more capacity may not be cost efficient, as computer costs rise dramatically with capacity upgrades.
Another solution to the computer capacity problem is the use of a cluster of computers to correlate hosting service requests. This approach to solving the problem of insufficient computer capacity utilizes an algorithm, program, or device to distribute hosting service requests between the clustered computers. Load balancing is critical when a cluster of computers is used, i.e., distribution of requests for hosting service, so as to guarantee the best possible utilization of computer resources. Programs to implement the distribution of hosting service requests are usually called load balancers; while the programs to process hosting service requests are called computer-clusters or farm-servers, e.g., a web-farm for an http protocol (see R. S. Engelschall “Load balancing your web site: Practical approaches for distributing http traffic,” Web Techniques Magazine, 3(5), May 1998; Allon, et al. Jul. 23, 1996 U.S. Pat. No. 5,539,883).
In a cluster of computers, each client has an address to which they are trying to connect which is linked to a load balancer. For instance, for a server with an http protocol (WWW), the load balancer could function at a DNS level and give out different IP addresses to clients who have requested the same symbol address, i.e., URL. Typically, though, clients connect to a server via a load balancer program that analyzes both the requests and the farm and redirects the request to one of the servers.
There are several different options for request-processing computer selection for the load balancer, including: consecutive, least loaded, type of request, and contents of transmitted data, among others. The final variant is formed at the last stage of the farm design or installation of a server.
There remains, however, a need in the art for a system and method to balance servers to effectively process and respond to a request for hosting services.